EVANSVILLE, Ind. - University of Southern Indiana Women's Volleyball grabbed its first victory of the season on Saturday evening by dropping divisional-rival Illinois Springfield in three sets.

USI was led in points by Sophomore Leah Anderson for a second straight game with 15 against the Prairie Stars. Anderson posted nine kills and five service aces to lead the Eagles in both categories. The outside hitter has torn through defenses in eight sets this season, averaging 4.50 points per set and 3.12 kills per set, both of which lead the Eagles. 

Senior setter Casey Cepicky recorded 23 assists along with eight digs, five points and three service aces on the night. Through two matches, Cepicky has added 55 assists to her career total, averaging 6.88 assists per set through the first two matches of the season.

Taylor Litteken and Katherine Koch followed up Anderson in points; Litteken added 9.5 points and Koch had 8.5. Litteken and Koch both cut through the Prairie Star defense with eight and seven kills. Litteken led the Eagles in hitting percentage at .500 while Koch covered all areas defensively with 10 digs. 

The Screaming Eagles bested Illinois Springfield in the majority of categories, including hitting percentage (.140 to .059), kills (36 to 27), assists (31 to 25), and aces (9 to 4). 

NOTES:

Casey Cepicky dished out another 23 assists in the second match of the year, raising her career number to 2,318. She sits 203 assists behind fifth place all-time in the USI record books.

Leah Anderson has showed out in the first two matches of her sophomore campaign, leading USI in points (36, 4.50 per set), kills (25, 3.12 per set) and service aces (9, 1.12 per set).

Defensively, the Eagles have worked together in full, with three players averaging 2.50 or more per set and 14.38 as a team per set. Cepicky leads USI with 21 through eight sets (2.62), while senior libero Callie Gubera and Anderson both average 2.50 per set. 

UP NEXT:

USI Volleyball finishes its season-opening three-match homestand on February 6 agaisnt the University of Indianapolis. The match is scheduled for 3 P.M. and can be seen GLVCSN.

Previews, live game updates, and post game information can be found via USI Athletics (@USIAthletics | #GoUSIEagles) social media accounts on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.